Armstrong converts pole to victory at Hampton Downs

Photo: Toyota Racing NZ

Marcus Armstrong took a lights-to-flag victory at Hampton Downs, becoming the first man to convert pole position into victory in the 2019 Toyota Racing Series.

M2 Competition driver Armstrong had built a strong gap to Giles Motorsport’s Raoul Hyman in second after an early red flag period, but a safety car in the closing stages of the race bunched up the field once more. However, Hyman was denied an opportunity to snatch his first win of the season as the race ended behind the safety car.

Hyman spent much of the second half of the race with Liam Lawson on his tail. The pair had run side by side at the race start, but the Hyman held onto second and managed to build a small gap to Lawson after the early red flag.

But Lawson had been reeling Hyman in, and was setting up a move for second when Brendon Leitch collided with Dev Gore at the back end of the top 10, bringing out the safety car under which the race ended.

Third for Lawson means he loses the championship lead to team-mate Armstrong, with five points splitting the pair.

With driving standards from the opening race of the weekend ? the postponed reverse grid race from Teretonga ? having been brought up by stewards ahead of the race, it was a relatively clean affair.

Petr Ptacek and race one winner Artem Petrov came together on the opening lap as Ptacek tried to dive up the inside for fourth. They were both sent into a spin and came to a stop at the edge of the track, prompting the early red flag period.

Elsewhere on the opening lap, Leitch had run wide through the gravel, returning to the track way down the order and prompting an impressive recovery drive for the second time in two days.

The Victor Motor Racing driver quickly moved back into the top 10, but found his progress haulted by Gore. They were joined by Petru Florescu and Kazuto Kotaka to make it a four way fight for the position, but the fight ended in disaster as Leitch?s front wing knocked Gore?s rearwing as he tried a risky move on the American.

The damage to Gore?s rear wing forced him to come to a stop on track, prompting the safety car and bringing an early end to the race. Leitch, who had lost his front wing, managed to make it back to the pits for a new nose cone, rejoining at the back of the field and out of the points.

Lucas Auer took fourth, his best result since the opening round of the season, ahead of Jackson Walls and Esteban Muth.

Cameron Das resisted pressure from Calan Williams to take seventh, with Kotaka and Florescu rounding out the top 10.

Race results (20 laps)